While I haven't been able to find out anything more about Matilda Cavanagh or her husband, Benjamin, I have been able to find out more about their youngest son, Francis. When I couldn't find an entry for him in the 1841 census, I thought he might have left town. Because I've been down this road with London ancestors before, I checked out the Proceedings of the Old Bailey on the off chance. There I found an entry for the trial of Francis Cavannah, Matthew Pearson and Margaret Pearson for theft and housebreaking.
Criminal records are so wonderful. There are so many of them, keeping a record of the trial and then, later, keeping track of the prisoners and writing down different information about them. One record that I found even gave his description and recorded that he was from Holborn. So I had a young man of around the right age, from the correct place. Not only that, I had a reason why I couldn't find him on the 1841 census. He was the only one of the three on trial found guilty and he was sentenced to transportation.
The New South Wales Convict Arrivals show that Francis Cavannah arrived on the ship the Emma Eugenia on 9 February, 1838. No wonder I wasn't able to find him on the 1841 census in England! Now to see if I can find any more records for him.
Sources:
The Proceedings of the Old Bailey https://www.oldbaileyonline.org
FindMyPast – Record Set: England & Wales,
Crime, Prisons & Punishment, 1770-1935
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